Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sage Rosenfels came into the game for one drive in the fourth quarter and led the Vikings to the game's only touchdown and a brief lead in Friday's 12-10 preseason loss to the San Diego Chargers.
Rosenfels was 6-for-6 passing for 51 yards on the drive, culminating on a 1-yard touchdown pass to running back Matt Asiata to give the Vikings a 10-9 lead with 1:50 remaining in the game.
San Diego started the game's final possession at their own 20-yard line. The Chargers were helped on the drive by a 15-yard penalty on Minnesota, followed by back-to-back completions by San Diego quarterback Jarrett Lee, a 20-yarder to Taylor Embree and a 17-yarder to Mike Willie. The Chargers were then able to run the clock down and Nick Novak kicked a 45-yard field goal as time expired to win the game.
San Diego led 6-3 at halftime and then added a 54-yard field goal by Nate Kaeding with 8:40 remaining and held a 9-3 lead until the game's final two minutes.
The Minnesota defense held San Diego without a touchdown, gave up only 202 yards of total offense and had six sacks. The Vikings fell to 1-2 in the preseason and San Diego is 3-0. Christian Ponder played into the fourth quarter and was 9-for-15 passing for 115 yards and an interception. Joe Webb also played briefly and was 6-for-8 passing for 59 yards.
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